Programs

Collaborative Management Program

The Collaborative Management Program (CMP) is a voluntary multi-agency that provide services to children and families by county departments, including human/social services, local judicial districts, the local health department, the local school district(s), each community mental health center and each Mental Health Assessment and Service Agency (Behavioral Health Organization). The CMP’s in each of the 32 counties use the input, expertise and active participation of parent or family advocacy organizations to reduce duplication and eliminate fragmentation of services, increase the quality, appropriateness and effectiveness of services provided, and encourage cost-sharing among service providers in order to ultimately achieve better outcomes and cost reduction for services provided to children and families in the child welfare system. A staff person of the Colorado Federation serves on the CMP State Steering Committee and is the Co-chair of the Family Voice and Choice Committee. This committee has collected useful data that will be used for the Statewide Family Network grant. This committee has also collected information from participating CMP governing bodies. The Family Involvement Survey continues to allow the Colorado Federation to identify and target which counties have participating family and youth representation, as well as family organization participation. The Colorado Federation also serves as the fiscal agent for the Colorado Multi Ethnic Cultural Consortium. These dollars are used to facilitate provide the cultural competency and congruency and development of the eight communities of excellence.

The Colorado System of Care Collaborative

Since the spring of 2003, this collaborative, comprised of state and local agencies, and family representatives, has worked on developing consensus for a vision, principles, goals and a framework for a system of care for children and families in Colorado. The Colorado Federation is actively involved in supporting and sustaining the work of the Collaborative. The Colorado Federation Technical Assistance Coordinator serves as the chair of the Collaborative, as well as is on the Gaps and Barriers Committee. Where other collaborative groups struggle to have strong family and family organization representation, the opposite is true of the collaborative. Family members with children and youth diagnosed with SED (serious emotional disturbance) and family organization representatives outnumber the provider and state partners at monthly meetings. The Collaborative partners will serve as implementers, trainers and advisors for the tool kit materials and will assist in efforts to increase family and youth participation when addressing policy change and decision-making.

Colorado Family Advocate Training

This 3 day training program is designed to prepare an individual to do the work of a family advocate. The first day’s training includes foundational information about mental health and co-occurring disorders, System of Care values and principles, perspective taking and assumptions, and Secondary Prevention and Intervention. The second day’s training concentrates on working with child serving systems, modeling and building collaborative relationships within each system, and working with families. Our final day’s training explores professionalism, ethics and boundaries, confidentiality and HIPAA, and documentation and service planning. A Certificate is awarded upon successful completion of Final Competency Exam.

Funding for this training came from the Colorado Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Council and the Colorado Department of Human Services’ Division of Behavioral Health Supplemental Block Grant.

iColorado System of Care Collaborative – Colorado Definitions

Family Member:

A family member is a person who is raising or has raised a child, youth, or adolescent with special physical, mental, emotional, behavioral, substance use, developmental, and or educational needs. As a family member they experienced working with many of the agencies and providers in their community.

A family member can be recognized and utilized as collaborators by serving on state and local boards, committees and coalitions. They also can be hired as Individualized Service Plan care managers and or facilitators, family advocators, evaluators, and trainers.

Family-Driven Organization:

An organization with the explicit purpose to serve families who have a child, youth, or adolescent with special physical, mental, emotional, behavioral, substance use, developmental and or educational needs. It is governed by a board of directors and comprised of a majority of individuals who are family members.

Family organizations have an independent governing structure. They give preference to family members in hiring practices, and promote family involvement at the individual, local, state and national levels.

Following a “System of Care*” model, a family organization provides opportunities for the “family voice” to be instrumental in shaping policies that offer a broad array of effective, coordinated services and supports that are individualized for the needs of each family.

Family Advocate:

C.R.S. 27-69-102(5)

A family advocate is a parent or primary care giver who:

Has been trained in a system-of-care approach to assist families in accessing and receiving services and supports;

Has raised or cared for a child or adolescent with a mental health or co-occurring disorder; and

Has worked with multiple agencies and providers, such as mental health, physical health, substance abuse, juvenile justice, developmental disabilities, education, and other state and local service systems.

Family Systems Navigator:

C.R.S. 27-69-102(5.5)

A family systems navigator is an individual who:

Has been trained in a system-of-care approach to assist families in accessing and receiving services and supports;

Has the skills, experience, and knowledge to work with children and youth with mental health or co-occurring disorders; and

Has worked with multiple agencies and providers, including mental health, physical health, substance abuse, juvenile justice, developmental disabilities, education, and other state and local service systems.

System of Care:

C.R.S. 27-69-102(8)

“System of care” means an integrated network of communitybased services and support that is organized to meet the challenges of youth with complex needs, including, but not limited to, the need for substantial services to address areas of developmental, physical, and mental health, substance abuse, child welfare, and education and involvement in or being at risk of involvement with the juvenile justice system. In a system of care, families and youth work in partnership with public and private organizations to build on the strengths of individuals and to address each person’s cultural and linguistic needs so services and support are effective.

Colorado Youth Voice

Colorado Youth Voice a state chapter of Youth M.O.V.E. is a coalition of youth advocates, ages 14-30, working in communities, across systems, and statewide. Youth Voice finds youth leaders or potential youth leaders, we train them with our peer designed trainings, and brings them back to their communities with our support! We are Youth and peer run for our peers.

Looking for more tools?

Whether you are a parent, family advocate, or systems professional you will find valuable information in this Toolkit regarding youth in the juvenile justice system experiencing mental health as well as co-occurring mental health and substance use issues.